Abstract
Data Recycling: Finding New GIS Uses for Old Data Track: Water, Wastewater, and Stormwater Author(s): Graham Hayes Recycling programs have made an impact on reducing landfill volumes and raising public awareness of renewable resources. Recycling promises to recover value from objects that were once thought worthless. While data is rarely considered a renewable resource, GIS can create new value from old data through non-traditional visualization and analytical insights. Many organizations unknowingly own and maintain a wealth of renewable data resources often locked in legacy systems. Geocoded customer locations connect other databases through common customer service IDs (e.g. customer billing, meter maintenance, usage demand statistics, leak history, work orders, water quality, or complaints). The same points can be reused to develop optimal meter reading routes to reduce vehicle costs, and staff time. These are just a few ways in which GIS can be used to recycle and repurpose old data--in some cases the reuse provides more value than the initial intended use. Graham Hayes Malcolm Pirnie, Inc. Red Oak Consulting 40 Centre Drive Orchard Park , NY 14127 US Phone: 716-667-6608 E-mail: GHayes@PIRNIE.COM |
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